Saturday, February 27, 2016

Greek Reporter
The NATO mission commenced its operation in the Aegean in order to stop the migrant flows incited by illegal traders.

More specifically, the Canadian frigate HMCS-Fredericton is close to Lesbos. The German frigate fgs-bonn, which the NATO mission is under command, was supplied in Souda and will sail towards the Central Aegean, whereas the Turkish frigate TCG-Barbaros-(F-244) and the Greek SALAMIS have returned for refilling in order to continue their mission in the next days.

Note that in the handling of the refugee and migrant flows, 11 ships of the Navy are operating, while doing their national mission.

Commander of the mission is the commandant of the Joint Force Command – JFC of NATO, Mark E. Ferguson of the U.S. Navy.

US Air Force Upgrades Aging B-52 Nuclear Bombers for New Smart Weapons
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Three US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bombers based at Barksdale Air Force Base in the state of Louisiana have been redeployed to Moron Air Base, Spain, the US Strategic Command announced in a statement.

“The multi-role heavy bombers will integrate and train with US European Command components and regional allies and partners by participating in the Norwegian exercise Cold Response during this short-term deployment,” the statement said on Friday.
The exercise is part of a build-up of US nuclear and regular forces in Europe that has been announced by the Obama administration.

Earlier this month, Defense Secretary Ashton carter announced that US military spending on Europe would be more than quadrupled from $689 million in fiscal year 2016 to $3.4 billion in fiscal year 2017.
Strategic Command chief Admiral Cecil Haney said the B-52 bombers provided a unique and complementary capability to the intercontinental ballistic missile as well as ballistic missile submarine legs of the US nuclear triad, which underpin America’s capabilities for strategic deterrence.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon highlighted on Friday that the borders must remain open because “such border restrictions do not apply with the Convention of 1951 for the Status of refugees and the 1967 Protocol, because the individual definition of the status of the refugee and the evaluation of the personal need for protection are not possible.”

However the State Department does not appear to share the same worries as the secretary-general of the United Nations regarding the refugee and migrant crisis, as it avoided directly asking the rest of the European countries to open their borders.

The deputy representative of State Department, Mark Toner, said that “every nation has the right to control its grounds;” however he asked from the nations to keep on showing generosity.

Toner also expressed his fondness towards Greece for the heavy load that the country is carrying regarding the refugee and migrant flows. “We have said many times that we would like to see the European Union approaching the refugee crisis in a cohesive and complete way, because, as it is noted, different countries take different measures in order to manage the crisis. We would like to see a more united approach.”

- See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2016/02/27/state-department-every-country-has-the-right-to-control-its-grounds/#sthash.ZNNTTkNX.dpuf

maxresdefaultGreece has turned down a request by Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner to visit Athens for explanations over the recall of Greece’s ambassador to Vienna.

According to an Athens Macedonia News Agency report citing diplomatic sources, the Greek side turned down the visitation request unless measures against Greece are lifted.

The same sources said that Austria has taken a step back after the tough stance of the Greek foreign ministry, which on Thursday called the Greek ambassador to Vienna Chryssoula Aliferi for consultations in Athens.

Austria has repeatedly accused Greece of failing to protect its borders properly and allowing an excessively high number of migrants to continue their journey towards north Europe through the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

“If it is really the case that the Greek external border cannot be protected, can it be still a Schengen external border?” Mikl-Leitner wondered during a meeting of European Union interior ministers on Thursday.

Austria’s initiative to call a meeting of Balkan states to discuss the refugee influx crisis excluding Greece has angered Athens. Greek Deputy Migration Minister Yannis Mouzalas retorted that Mikl-Leitner was “falsifying the truth” and “dragging Austria into increasingly hostile acts towards Greece and the EU.”

Mouzalas said that the European Commission and Frontex have confirmed that Greece is doing its job in protecting Europe’s border in the best possible way. Athens has also expressed its discontent in the belief that Austria has encouraged a series of border restrictions by Balkan states, causing thousands of migrants to be stranded in Greece.

BELGRADE – The Kosovar parliament on Friday voted in former prime minister Hashim Thaci as the president of the self-proclaimed republic, Serbian media reported.

Photo: nadlanu.com
PHOTO: NADLANU.COM

He was elected after three rounds of voting marred by protests in the Kosovar capital of Pristina, the Kossev news website said. Opposition lawmakers released tear gas inside the parliament in an attempt to disrupt the voting.

In the first round, Thaci received 50 votes in the 120-seat parliament. He improved the result by 14 votes in the second round, before emerging victorious with 71 votes.

Among those voting for Taci were the Serb list MPs, and the new president, in his first address in parliament after the vote, voiced a special appreciation for the support.

The 47-year-old will be president of the Serbian breakaway republic for five years. He served as Kosovo’s first-ever prime minister between 2008 and 2014.

In 2008, the Albanian government in Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia. Belgrade does not recognize Kosovo’s statehood.

Dozens of messages associated voting for cardinal issues that is facing the Himara Region, especially the attitude of the properties, shows a deeply disappointing results.

Some questions related to territorial division, which is done in the most unscrupulous by the Parliament and the government of Albania. As is known, the joined arbitrarily of the Region of Himara voting in the Parliament of Albania in July 2014, with another area, without the desire of its inhabitants, is the violation of the Albanian Constitution, the article 108.

Interesting questions were in relation of the Human Rights and freedoms. How is it possible the question, that Albania's NATO members, so openly violates a series of issues that have to do with the chapter of freedom and human rights, ranging from property, territorial division and ethnic identity?

But questions coming from Himariotes citizens in Albania, had to do with the attitude of Washington, in connection with matters of Himara Region. What prevents USA, bind to the Albanian Government to implement the country's constitution and international obligations for freedoms and human rights, to The Himara Community, they were looted properties and are thus favor the nationalist policies in the country, to assimilate history, culture and heritage of Himara?

Another question has to do with the oligarchs, who are staying on the government and parliament of Albania. Fascist methods that are legal and the government undertakes, to build tourist resorts on the property of the people of Himara, which are supported by the Soros policy in USA, why not apply Albanian Constitution, article 181 and 41 of the properties?

Many questions were directed around the Protocol of Corfu, an international obligation that Albania does not apply, many citizens are skeptical about "double standards", the other for Albanians to demand the rights in the Balkans withful support of USA, and another for the Greeks of Albania, particularly for people of Himara, still not known the old Greek origin, which the CENSUS, 2011 also has given results, with false methods, and not transparent.

Friday, February 26, 2016

In an effort to step up sea patrols to stem the flow of migrants making their way across from Turkey to Greece, pressure has been put on NATO to deploy ships to the Aegean Sea, which has now put it on a collision course with both Athens and Ankara.

Neither Turkey nor Greece have been able to contain their extensive sea borders and pressure was put on NATO to begin patrols. However, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has admitted the move puts it at the center of a diplomatically sensitive issue.

There is considerable animosity between Greece and Turkey dating back centuries, but most recently centered on Cyprus, where — in 1974 — Turkey occupied a third of the island in response to an Athens-backed coup aimed at annexing Cyprus to Greece.

Turkey refuses to acknowledge the Republic of Cyprus (an EU member since 2004) as the sole authority on the island, and recognizes the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus since its establishment in 1983.

This has been a major sticking point in the question of the accession of Turkey into the EU as a full member. Another is a dispute over territorial sea limits between the two nations. Erdogan's position on the Kurds — as well as the continuing crises in neighboring Syria and Iraq are exacerbating the situation.

Reconnaissance Only

"Our ships will be providing information to the coastguards and other national authorities of Greece and Turkey. This will help them carry out their duties even more effectively to deal with the illegal trafficking networks," Stoltenberg said in a statement.

"We are also establishing direct links with Frontex, the European Union's border agency. We will conduct our activities in the Aegean Sea. Our commanders will decide the area where they will be operating, in coordination with Greece and Turkey. NATO vessels can deploy in the territorial waters of Greece and Turkey.

"Greek and Turkish forces will not operate in each other's territorial waters and airspace. NATO's task is not to turn back the boats. We will provide critical information. To enable the Greek and Turkish coastguards, as well as Frontex, to do their job even more effectively," Stoltenberg said.

The details of his words are important. Since the NATO operation will not involve turning back migrant boats and Turkish vessels will not cross into Greek sea areas and Greece will not operate in Turkish waters, the situation is stalemate. Migrants know no boundaries.

A Syrian refugee child looks on, moments after arriving on a raft with other Syrian refugees on a beach on the Greek island of Lesbos, January 4, 2016.

With Greece loudly complaining about a lack of EU assistance in dealing with its growing migrant problem — and the closing off of its northern borders — with little ability to actually patrol the whole Aegean Sea on its own, the situation for Athens is impossible.

Turkey has come under severe criticism for failing to impose border controls under a US$3.35 billion EU program and has seemed unwilling — so far — to strengthen its land or sea military assets, it too looks likely to be unable to stem the maritime migrant flow.

If neither Athens nor Ankara have the capability to deploy assets into the Aegean and NATO declaring it will not turn boats back, it is highly likely the Aegean will continue to be a free-for-all.

TIRANA - A ‘large number’ of Syrian refugees are waiting to cross into Albania, the Balkan nation's integration minister said on Thursday, as migrants begin to seek out new routes into northern Europe following a series of border clampdowns.
Integration minister Klajda Gjosha said the buildup on Albania's frontier appeared to be in response to neighboring Macedonia's decision at the weekend to deny entry to Afghan migrants coming from Greece and impose tougher checks for Syrians and Iraqis.
"I was informed that a large number of Syrians are waiting to enter Albania," said Gjosha, without providing an exact number.
Although both Macedonia and Albania share a border with Greece, the latter has so far not been a main transit country on the migrant trail into northern and western Europe.
More than a million migrants and refugees have arrived in Europe since last year, most entering via Greece. Since July, Albanian police have stopped several hundred migrants from crossing over from the Greek side of the border.
On Thursday, police said they had forced back a dozen Pakistanis who had tried to enter Albania illegally.
According to local media, Albanian authorities have drawn up plans to provide reception centers for 10,000 Syrian migrants in the southern town of Korca and Gjirokastra, near the border with Greece.
Faced with becoming the latest country to be caught up in Europe's biggest migration crisis since World War II, Gjosha stressed the importance of "close collaboration with all our neighboring countries, with Greece and the other members of EU".

After throwing eggs at the Prime Minister, opposition MPs have threatened to boycott parliament in a row over politicians with criminal records.

Fatjona MejdiniBIRN
Tirana
Prime Minister Edi Rama heading out of the Parliament after opposition's MPs throw eggs to him | Photo: LSA/Malton Dibra
Albania's parliament is again in deadlock over judicial reforms because of an angry dispute between the parties over ridding parliament of people with criminal records.
Opposition MPs tried to stop the parliamentary session on Thursday by throwing eggs towards Prime Minister and Socialist Party leader Edi Rama.
Protests started when Armando Prenga, a government MP, was returned to parliament despite his involvement in a brawl in September 2015 with a 66-year-old fisherman in which he used a handgun.
Prenga was later expelled from Rama's Socialist Party but voted in line with other Socialist MPs during a parliamentary commission on Tuesday after the Supreme Court released him on bail.
His return to parliament angered the centre-right opposition MPs who demanded the prompt amendment of a newly approved law that bans people with convictions from public office.
They want the law to demand "the immediate removal of every individual from politics who was involved in injuring or threatening of another individual".
The leader of the Democratic Party parliamentary group, Edi Paloka, on Thursday said his party would not attend parliament if the majority did not accept the amendment.
"Otherwise, this parlament is not going to function any longer. It will close right here, right now," Paloka said.
However, Taulant Balla, a Socialist MP and the vice-chair of the cross-party parliamentary commission on cleaning up political life, said the opposition request could not be met.
"We cannot amendment the law for a single person... We can work together only on issues that we have already agreed," he said.
Because of the dispute, the opposition is expected formalize its boycott, making it difficult for Albania to conclude EU-mandated judicial reforms and implement the law on cleaning up politics and ridding the administration of people with a criminal past.
Progress on the judicial reforms is essential if Albania wishes to open negotiations on joining the EU.
Consensus between the parties is also required for the establishment of the National Bureau of Investigation, an agency modelled on the FBI that aims to tackle corruption in high places
- See more at: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/al

After throwing eggs at the Prime Minister, opposition MPs have threatened to boycott parliament in a row over politicians with criminal records.

Fatjona MejdiniBIRN
Tirana
Prime Minister Edi Rama heading out of the Parliament after opposition's MPs throw eggs to him | Photo: LSA/Malton Dibra
Albania's parliament is again in deadlock over judicial reforms because of an angry dispute between the parties over ridding parliament of people with criminal records.
Opposition MPs tried to stop the parliamentary session on Thursday by throwing eggs towards Prime Minister and Socialist Party leader Edi Rama.
Protests started when Armando Prenga, a government MP, was returned to parliament despite his involvement in a brawl in September 2015 with a 66-year-old fisherman in which he used a handgun.
Prenga was later expelled from Rama's Socialist Party but voted in line with other Socialist MPs during a parliamentary commission on Tuesday after the Supreme Court released him on bail.
His return to parliament angered the centre-right opposition MPs who demanded the prompt amendment of a newly approved law that bans people with convictions from public office.
They want the law to demand "the immediate removal of every individual from politics who was involved in injuring or threatening of another individual".
The leader of the Democratic Party parliamentary group, Edi Paloka, on Thursday said his party would not attend parliament if the majority did not accept the amendment.
"Otherwise, this parlament is not going to function any longer. It will close right here, right now," Paloka said.
However, Taulant Balla, a Socialist MP and the vice-chair of the cross-party parliamentary commission on cleaning up political life, said the opposition request could not be met.
"We cannot amendment the law for a single person... We can work together only on issues that we have already agreed," he said.
Because of the dispute, the opposition is expected formalize its boycott, making it difficult for Albania to conclude EU-mandated judicial reforms and implement the law on cleaning up politics and ridding the administration of people with a criminal past.
Progress on the judicial reforms is essential if Albania wishes to open negotiations on joining the EU.
Consensus between the parties is also required for the establishment of the National Bureau of Investigation, an agency modelled on the FBI that aims to tackle corruption in high places
- See more at: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/al

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has said that Albania will not become the new route for migrants headed for western Europe "because we have neither the conditions nor the strength nor the enthusiasm to save the world while others close their borders."

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) has all but closed its border with Greece, blocking the path for migrants who are continuing to arrive at the rate of thousands daily, leading some to wonder whether a route through Albania would be viable.

Speaking on a talk show late Thursday Rama contradicted a statement made earlier by the integration minister in which she said Albania would not build a wall to prevent refugees and other migrants from entering.

Rama said Albania could not hold "the entire burden. ... I have said that in case of a distribution of the burden we shall take our part."

He added that Albania has for six months been in negotiation with the Italian government about what to do if the migrants came to his country, "because normally they would not come to stay in Albania but would target Italy" – across the Adriatic Sea. [AP]

Thursday, February 25, 2016

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With EU officials considering border closures along the Balkan refugee route, Greece is worried that it will become overwhelmed by migrants. The EU has chastised Greece for not securing its external border, but failings can be found in Brussels too.

At five o'clock in the morning last Tuesday: Macedonia has once again closed its border, and just a few hours later, chaos reigns. Eighty buses with 4,000 refugees have been stopped by the Greek police 20 kilometers from the frontier and they are now waiting in a gas-station parking lot. Bus drivers argue, refugees jostle on the overfilled lot and overwhelmed police officers yell orders. "Macedonia, Macedonia," the people waiting scream, "open the border!"

But today, the border remains closed to most people. And if it were up to Brussels and the Germans, it would remain that way -- that is, to anyone not from Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan. Since mid-November, Macedonia has tightened its border controls and whoever isn't from one these three countries is turned away. Now, many people's dreams of Europe come to an end here, in Idomene.
For it has recently become clear that Turkey is both unable and unwilling to stop the flow of refugees. As a result, the EU is placing its bets on Macedonia, with a plan that has the support of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

Last year, the majority of the over 850,000 refugees traveling along the Balkan route went through Macedonia. If authorities have their way, that will come to an end. "Macedonia is our second line of defense," says a high-ranking EU official. Several EU states have approved the deployment of 82 officers in Macedonia with the task of improving border protection. Financial support is to follow.

If Macedonia reduces the number of people it allows into the country, it will lessen the pressure on Germany and Austria. It will also mean that more people will stay in Greece -- and, Brussels hopes, place additional pressure on Greece to better protect its borders.

Map: Greece's refugee conundrum.Zoom
DER SPIEGEL

Idomene is a case study of what would happen were Europe to seal its borders and shut down the Balkan Route, the path most migrants take on their way to Germany and the rest of Europe. The result would be a massive backup of hundreds of thousands of refugees in Greece.
And this in a country that is in a deep recession, and where every fourth citizen is unemployed. It is a country where angry farmers, teachers, doctors, lawyers, taxi drivers and ferry workers -- actually everyone -- is opposed to the government's austerity measures. And it is a country that is once again in danger of sliding into its next big political crisis. The country will face big problems if Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras can't find a compromise with the country's international creditors, who are pushing for tough reforms. Or if Greece is made to bear the burden of the refugee crisis.

'Greece is Like Afghanistan'

When Macedonia closes its border for even just a few hours, thousands of people accumulate: including children, the elderly, pregnant women, sick people. There may be a reception center, with tents, blankets and toilets, directly next to the border fence with a capacity of 1,200 people, but when it's full, most people spend their nights outside, often for days at a time.

At the same time, thousands of people are arriving on the Greek islands every day -- over 67,000 in January alone. And according to UNICEF, more than a third of the arrivals are minors; almost two thirds of the people who are passing the Macedonian border are women and children. They are making the risky crossing in winter out of fear that the route to the north will soon be shut off. Some 400 people have already drowned this year, including many children. For now, the impending closure of the border is more of a draw than a deterrent.

Mukhtar from Herat, Afghanistan intends to wait at the border until it is open again, no matter how long it takes. He is 18 years old and travelling alone. He fled his country's poverty and hopelessness and almost drowned shortly before before reaching the Greek island of Chios, he says, but the Greek coast guard saved him. Like almost all of the other people here, he wants to go to Germany, "the only country where refugees are being helped." Apply for asylum in Greece? Mukhtar laughs. "Greece is like Afghanistan, there is nothing here for us refugees."

Mukhtar has the right passport and will likely ultimately be allowed to cross. But what happens to those who are not allowed to continue their journey? What does it mean for Greece if Europe is drawing its "second line of defense" here?

Many will try to cross into Europe anyway, illegally via the Macedonian border with the help of fake documents or by following the new routes through Albania and Croatia -- or by boat to Italy. But all others are stuck in Greece.

This despite the fact that since 2011, Germany has declined to send refugees back to Greece, which the Dublin Regulation stipulates, out of human rights considerations. The German Interior Ministry just extended the pause in deportations until June. According to a report by the Gemeinsames Analyse- und Strategiezentrum illegale Migration (Joint Analysis and Strategy Center on Illegal Immigration), many refugees in Greece live on the streets, even children and neo-nazis periodically hunt them down. The conditions for many refugees in Greece are described by the German authorities as "inhumane." And still, the country is potentially being turned into a giant refugee camp.

According to a confidential memo from the German Foreign Office, a backup of refugees would "inevitably lead to uncontrollable humanitarian conditions and security problems within days." Migration researcher Franck Düvell from Oxford University warns that it would lead to "downright apocalyptic scenarios": Greece would collapse within a few weeks, he believes.

Criticism of Athens

Officials in Brussels are seemingly aware of this, which is why they are currently trying to balance partial border closings, the imposition of better controls in Greece and the public admonishing of Athens.

In a confidential, but perhaps not entirely accidentally leaked, report, the EU Commission describes the findings of its inspectors on the islands of Chios and Samos and on the land border with Turkey in November. Their conclusion: Greece has "seriously neglected" its duty to control its outer borders.

The list of shortcomings, the report claims, is long: The registration of the refugees isn't working, because there aren't devices for taking fingerprints and the Internet sometimes stops working; there aren't enough officials; there are too few boats to guard the coast; passports are not being compared with databases, including those of Interpol.

"The major culprit isn't Greece," Greek Minister of Immigration Policy Ioannis Mouzalas says. He admits that registration in the initial reception centers known as "hotspots" is going slowly, and that things are behind schedule. But he claims the EU report is exaggerated, and that, either way, it is now outdated. Additionally, he claims, the EU has only sent Greece 800 of the 1,800 requested Frontex officials, and financial help for the purchase of fingerprint readers only came the previous week. He argues that the delays are a "convenient excuse" for the EU.

Mouzalas is furious that Greece is being pilloried while the most important mechanism to solve the problem is not being implemented: the distribution quota. Last fall, European leaders agreed to redistribute 66,400 refugees from Greece. So far, nine countries have only offered up 305 spots. Only 157 people have been relocated, a mere 10 to Germany. "Instead of chastising Greece ..., it would be more productive to do something about those states that sabotage the relocation scheme," says Mouzalas.

Migration researcher Düvell also finds the EU's accusations "deeply unfair, cynical and shameful." He has conducted research himself in Greece and in Turkey -- and has come to the conclusion that it is impossible for Athens to stop migration to Europe, or even slow it down, on its own. "The EU member states are needed. They need to find a way to fairly distribute asylum-seekers across Europe," says Düvell. Brussel's criticism, he argues, is a "cheap trick," in order to "distract people from the failures of the EU states in the refugee crisis."

Misplaced Anger

A confidential report by the German parliament administration from January 29 likewise suggests that the EU redistribution program is in danger of falling apart due to the lack in willingness by member states to take in refugees.

The criticism of Greece also seems unfair because international law makes it illegal to simply send refugees back to Turkey. In the past, the Greeks were reprimanded for pushing away boats with refugees and Alexis Tsipras' government has mostly stopped these "push-backs." Now it is being criticized for doing the opposite. The German government is aware of this dilemma: According to an internal report by the "hotspot" commissioner of the German government from December, Turkey is the "central player in the reduction" of the numbers of refugees. "The Greeks can only save the refugees, but not stop the smugglers."

For this reason, the Netherlands government has pushed for a plan in which refugees would be directly sent back from the Greek islands to Turkey on ferries. In return, the EU member states should then be willing to accept a contingent of 250,000 refugees every year from Turkey. But that is unrealistic as long as the Europe-wide distribution doesn't work.

And regardless, the suggestion is legally problematic for two reasons: For one, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights stipulates that asylum applications must be individually evaluated. And although Greece just declared Turkey to be a "secure third country" to which refugees may be deported, mass returns are unlikely, Düvell believes.

He asks, "Why should Erdogan act as Europe's bouncer?" The memo by the European Commission therefore exists to justify the upcoming extension of the temporary border controls, like those that have been introduced in Germany and Austria. According to the Schengen Border Code, there needs to be a lack in supervision of the outer borders for the closure of the interior borders to be allowable. The ultimate goal is that of saving Schengen: An end to the free movement of goods and people would be especially damaging to Germany and the northern countries.

Mouzalas, the Greek Minister of Immigration Policy, also believes that Brussel's threats to kick his country out of the Schengen Zone amount to fear-mongering and, legally speaking, nonsense. Anyways: "Whatever happens with Schengen, the migrant flows will not be affected."

He is much more afraid that the countries on the Balkan route will close down their borders -- all the way to the north. For this reason, he is putting his faith in the most hated woman in his homeland: the German chancellor. "Angela Merkel is under pressure, so I fear that at some point the German border will close." And then he says something that is very unusual for a Greek. "Germany is right now the voice of reason in Europe."

Eroded Trust

In order to avoid giving the Europeans a reason to shut the borders, Tsipras has now decreed that, by mid-February, all five "hotspots" and two new reception centers shall be operational. In order for that to happen quickly, he has assigned the task to the army. One of the reception centers is to be built west of Thessaloniki, on Military Base 1090. A ghost town, with roofless barracks, covered in garbage and weeds, the only living things are a couple of growling, snarling guard dogs. In fewer than two weeks, 4,000 refugees are to be housed here.
The Delta municipality, in which the military base is located, is poor, there are drug dealers and criminals. "The government didn't even ask us in advance," complains Delta's mayor, Mimis Fotopoulos. "The people here aren't so concerned about the refugees themselves," he says. "They are concerned because they don't trust the government to enforce law and order. And they don't trust Europe, which seems to want to unload its problems onto Greece."

Only on one point are the citizens of Delta optimistic: They think it's completely unrealistic that the military base will be ready to house refugees in two weeks.

NATO allies have agreed to a plan for
their ships in the Aegean Sea to help Turkey and Greece counter criminal
networks smuggling refugees into Europe, NATO's chief said on Thursday,
overcoming territorial sensitivities between Greece and Turkey.

After late night talks in Brussels, NATO envoys set out how ships sent
to the Aegean in early February can work with Turkish and Greek
coastguards and the European Union border agency Frontex to rescue
refugees at sea and return them to Turkey.

“Greek and Turkish forces will not operate in each other's territorial
waters and airspace,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a
statement following.

Relations between Greece and Turkey have traditionally been tense and
since the Feb. 11 deal by NATO defence ministers to deploy ships to the
Aegean, Greece's defence minister has accused Turkey of trying to
undermine the deal.

NATO diplomats said one of the issues was where Greek and Turkish ships
should patrol and whether that would set a precedent for claims over
disputed territorial waters.

Stoltenberg said other NATO vessels will be able to sail in the territorial waters of Greece and Turkey.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu sought the NATO mission to help tackle Europe's worst
migration crisis since World War Two. More than a million asylum-seekers
arrived last year.

The European Union is relying on Turkey to help stem the flows of
Syrians fleeing civil war, giving Ankara 3 billion euros to set up camps
and help take in more refugees, although progress in implementing the
deal has been slow.

Germany hopes that unlike the EU's mission off the Italian coast, which
brings rescued migrants to Europe's shores, NATO will return migrants to
Turkey even if they are picked up in Greek waters, effectively sealing
the border.

“In case of rescue of persons coming via Turkey, they will be taken back to Turkey,” Stoltenberg said.

Greece, Turkey, the Aegean, and NATO never mixed in a positive, fruitful manner.

25 February 2016

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Greece, since 2015 when the
Tsipras administration came to power, was quickly undermined and
subverted by untold masses of “irregular” undocumented entries. Europe’s
“core,” under the incomprehensible “leadership” of Ms. Merkel, was
quickly immersed in a vituperative war of words with the European
“Union’s” eastern members demanding, in no uncertain terms, an active
defense against the Muslim deluge. Greece, in the far corner of Europe,
simply encouraged such an influx by having as Minister of Immigration
Policy Ms. Tasia Christodolopoulou, an old (ex)-Communist Party member,
who welcomed: “anyone wanting shelter.”

The implications for Greece were severe.
Various estimates put the illegal population in Greece at anywhere from
1.4 to 1.8 million in early 2016. Despite the fact that the Greek
government agreed on establishing Hotspots within its territory, the
future looks worrisome since most Eastern European countries are hastily
concocting plans to turn Greece into an open air storage of unwanted
migrants by blocking one of its members’ northern border with a
non-EU member, (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia), that is to be
supported and augmented by EU resources to isolate Greece.

Let’s have a deeper insight on what the
prospects are right now. Summer 2016 is closing and the collapse of
tourism in the eastern Greek Aegean islands - a vital foreign exchange
earner for Greece - is around the corner. For example, in Castelorizo, a
small Greek Island of 200 permanent residents, the number immigrants
and refugees reached around 1,000 within one month. Furthermore, we are
already facing serious risks of violent migrant protests on the islands,
with the Greek population facing severe security and personal safety
threats. Moreover, the rapid increase of already swelling Muslim illegal
migrant populations in mainland Greece, especially thanks to the Greek
government’s established tactic of transport-turn-loose-and-forget that
is overwhelming Athens, has already proved catastrophic. As analyzed in other pieces for GIA, many arms’ smugglers and jihadists take advantage of this situation to develop their plans.

Most recently, a half-baked decision of
the Tsipras administration to bring NATO into the desperate effort to
stem the migrant flow into Western Europe was taken. “Isn’t it a good
thing for NATO, a military organization that gets things done, to get
directly involved in battling the human smugglers and save lives, not to
mention help Greece with its humanitarian impasse?”

Unfortunately, well-intentioned queries
such as these miss critical questions associated with such a hurried
decision and the long-term implications for Greece. Let us set aside for
the moment all the confident words of Greece’s “partners” who are happy
to see a NATO naval force coming in to “help,” and let us look at the
facts.

Greece, Turkey, the Aegean, and NATO
never mixed in a positive, fruitful manner. Turkey’s demands for the
abrogation of the Lausanne Treaty, and the apportioning of the
Archipelago to its benefit, have occupied only sub-footnotes in the
Alliance’s deliberations – especially since Lausanne specifically
provides that Turkey has no claims to anything that lies past three nautical miles from its shores. In
practice and definition, therefore, any step that involves NATO
operating on issues related to national sovereignty, rights of innocent
passage, and Turkish claims upon Greek island territories could, and,
most likely will, become hazardous to Greece’s sovereignty.

Since this NATO decision was formed on
the spur of the moment, nobody knows what exactly has been agreed – or
not agreed – on the mission profile, the rules of engagement, and other
“details” that could turn into major issues. Predictably, of course, the
Western press is already in self-congratulatory mode expounding on the
positive load of this maritime patrol which, however, “is not about
stopping or pushing back refugee boats,” as the NATO Secretary General
warned. This impeccably politically correct statement alone is enough
to tell the weary observer that NATO in the Aegean will be wearing
exclusively its “humanitarian” cloak with all the implications of such a
move this involves. (The Italians, through their 2013-14 Mare Nostrum operation,
have already enough experience on how any such maritime mission can
easily turn into ‘a transport company for migrants,’ who see naval ships
as the surest means of entering Europe illegally. Mare Nostrum brought an estimated 150,000 African and Middle Eastern illegals into Italy).

Turkey has supposedly agreed to take
back illegals caught at the beginning of their journey to the Greek
islands. Nevertheless, trusting erratic and increasingly combative
Islamic president Erdogan is not the wisest choice. Turkey’s subversive
behavior and collusion with Islamic fanatics battling the Syrian regime
is naked for all to see, if, of course, those who can, have the courage to observe.

The announced NATO deployment includes
three warships. These are fleet assets designed for completely different
purposes, namely combat in the open seas, anti-air operations, fleet
defense, etc. One cannot but ask the obvious question of what these
ships can accomplish better than the already deployed coast guard
vessels and Frontex resources, both of which are vastly more capable in
operational, maneuvering, and mission-specific terms. The claim that the
NATO ships would provide “better intelligence” is a poorly designed.
However, Turkish human smugglers are experts in their waters, well
connected with Turkish authorities who make a bundle in bribes, and know
the coastline like the back of their hand. Three warships and some
aircraft interdicting dozens of minuscule targets in ways that can cut
the migrant flow down to acceptable levels (if there is such a thing,)
may be a nice tabletop game but, in real maritime terms, is as money
thrown directly into the sea to appease the masses.

This is the worst possible time for
Greece to get involved in the inevitable, renewed “negotiations” with
NATO and Turkey over jurisdiction, the Aegean, and how to approach
constant Turkish challenges and “near war” violations of Greek
territorial zones in both the air and the sea. These are issues on which
NATO and the EU are silent for obvious reasons. But, like a thorn
waiting to stab, these questions will surface the minute Turkey begins to object on this or that aspect of the NATO operation claiming that its “interests” are harmed, as it will certainly do.

With its economy broken, its banks all
but extinguished, its people in uproar over increasing pressures from
the creditors, its society in an uncontrolled downward spiral, its
cities and towns soon to be overwhelmed by despairing Muslim aliens, its
political “elites” involved in partisan cockfights and irrelevant
personal squabbling, and the country’s administration moronic and
dysfunctional, Greece now has to deal with NATO’s latest “stability”
gift.

In December 2015, NATO
officially invited Montenegro to become its 29th member state.
Montenegro is a tiny country with a population of 620,000 and armed
forces that barely number 2,000. In spite of the small size of
Montenegro’s military Philip Breedlove appraised very positively the
performance of Montenegro’s troops in Afghanistan, even suggesting
that their good performance is one of the reasons for potentially
placing Montenegro on the fast-track towards NATO membership. But while
Montenegrin elites have pushed relentlessly forward with the membership
application, the country has been shaken by mass protests against the
prospect of membership in the Alliance. Those Montenegrins, who still
remember the 1999 NATO bombing, would prefer neutrality, yet, as soon as
‘the beginning of a beautiful alliance’ - if to quote Jens Stoltenberg –
will be put in motion, there is hardly a chance to avert the course.

Back in 1999

NATO bombed Montenegro in 1999. The
bombing destroyed a military airfield and damaged the civilian airfield
in Podgorica; it also destroyed the transportation hub Murino, a
military base in Danilovgrad, and a radar device on the coast. Ten
Montenegrins were killed, three of whom were children. Still, today
after 16 years, nobody has been held responsible.

One Montenegran recollects
the event: “I remember watching from the balcony how Podgorica airport
was burning. That day I went to [the city of] Niksic and on the way
there I met just two cars. I remember that the bus attendant did not
want to take the money for the tickets and just kept saying, “Children,
who know what will happen tomorrow? You see that bombs are falling,
better drink some juice somewhere with the money””.

But today, the Montenegrin government
does not use any negative words in regards to NATO both in the media and
in official negotiations. Italian naval carriers and US destroyers are
frequently moored in the ports of Bar and Tivat.

The change is exemplified by the fate of
the underground military airport Shipchanik. The airport housed 26
military aircraft. NATO’s bombs struck a hole in the hill and the
Yugoslav military aviation in Montenegro was in flames in an instant.
Now, the Shipchanik tunnel has been converted into a tasting room for
the Montenegrin winery Plantage. The winery produces the wine Vranac, a favourite with tourists. No memento reminds the tourists of the former airport and its fate. Right after the NATO membership invitation was issued, thousands of Montenegrins gathered to protest the prospect of NATO entry.

“This is the beginning of a very beautiful alliance.”

With these words
NATO’s chief Jens Stoltenberg officially invited Montenegro into the
Alliance. The man who undoubtedly played a key role in securing this
invitation is Milo Djukanović, the current Montenegrin Prime Minister
(inaugurated in 2012). Critical voices point out
that the invitation will have flattered his already over-inflated ego
as well as that of his ruling clique. Djukanović also bears
responsibility for the decision not to hold a public referendum on NATO
membership, opting for parliamentarian approval only. Even though 84% of
the citizens want a referendum
on this issue, once again the defence of the public is firmly taken
outside the realm of public politics and into the dark corridors of
parliamentary politicking.

Thus, to understand the militarization
of yet another Balkan ‘democracy’, it is necessary to shed light on the
political path of the man who has been at the helm of the country’s
politics for the past 20 years. Milo Djukanovic, hailed by Radio Free Europe (RFE) as “the smartest man in the Balkans” was inaugurated in 2012 as the Montenegrin Prime Minister. Radio Free Europe describes Djukanovic admiringly:
“А person doesn't remain at the pinnacle of power in a country in a
volatile region like the Balkans for two decades - as the Montenegrin
Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic has done -- without knowing how to
determine which way the wind is blowing and how to reinvent oneself”.

This laudatory attitude is hardly shared
by many of his compatriots. In October 2015, the Montenegrin capital
Podgorica was paralyzed by three-week long protests. The protests were launched by a demonstration
demanding the creation of an interim government to organise
Montenegro’s ‘first ever free and fair elections’. Raso, a 30-year old
protester, told the AFP news agency that: “More than 25 years in power would be too much even if Milo Djukanovic was Mahatma Gandhi and not such thief”.

Djukanovic was first elected as prime
minister in 1991 at the age of 29. This was the first paid job he has
ever held. Since then, he has served five terms as prime minister and
one term as Montenegro's president (1998-2002). Since 1998, Djukanovic
has been the unchangeable president of the biggest Montenegrin party,
the Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro (DPSM); DPSM was
originally the Montenegrin branch of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia.
When Djukanovic first emerged on the political scene, he was a close
ally of Slobodan Milošević. In 1996 however, he turned against
Milošević, abandoning the traditional joint Serbian and Montenegrin
vision for an independent Montenegro instead. RFE describes
Djukanovic’s transformation by saying: “At the first opportune moment,
in 1998, he dumped Milosevic and remade himself as a pro-Western
reformer”. Paradoxically, this ‘laudatory’ characteristic of Djukanović
by RFE completely coincides with the way he is described by his critics:
“The Prime Minister Milo Djukanović, a corrupt opportunist
well-connected to the shadowy networks of organized crime and
intelligence services, in power since the Fall of the Berlin Wall, even
called those who are against NATO membership ‘the enemies of the
state’”.

Critical analyses
also point out that during his time on the top, Djukanovic has cemented
his power through his control over state institutions. “Djukanovic’s
longevity in power can be attributed mainly to his absolute control over
the police-intelligence apparatus in the country”, says Filip
Kovacevic, chairman of the Movement for Neutrality of Montenegro (MNM).
“Since the early 1990s, he has had the ultimate power to reward and
punish and was brutal in destroying all political opponents”.

Brutality
marked the suppression of the latest anti-government protest in October
2015. Those who protested and opposed Djukanovic have been condemned as
pro-Russian and pro-Serbian. At least three opposition leaders and
several MPs were injured and two journalists were arrested during the
violence, which erupted when protesters tried to march toward the
Parliament in Podgorica. A group of 125 prominent intellectuals,
independent journalists and civil society activists announced a ‘Protest
Memorandum’, which condemned the violent dispersal of the peaceful
demonstration.

‘A pawn in the great power games.'

But in spite of the moral character of
Montenegro’s Prime Minister, or maybe precisely because of it, in
December 2015 the mood at NATO’s headquarters was celebratory –
Montenegro was officially invited to join the alliance.

Two questions emerge with regards to
Montenegro’s invitation to the Alliance. First of all: does NATO need
Montenegro? NATO hardly needs another military base along the Adriatic
coast, even though some have argued that
“Montenegro’s inclusion plugs a gap along the coastline and turns the
Adriatic, finally, into NATO’s private pool”. The second question is
whether Montenegro needs NATO’s collective security assurance. Other
analysts point out that
“surrounded by much more powerful neighbours, with a growing share of
the Albanian population, Montenegro can guarantee its sovereignty and
territorial integrity perhaps only in this way [by joining NATO]”.
However, Montenegro is surrounded by NATO member-states and attack from
its neighbours seems extremely unlikely.

The discussion in the American press and
the statements of NATO officials eschew any possible justification
discussed above. Only one theme dominates the discourse: Montenegro’s
inclusion in NATO is a message to Russia that NATO’s eastwards expansion
will continue. Reuters reports
that NATO diplomats have stated that the inclusion will send an
unequivocal message to Moscow that Russia does not have a veto on the
alliance's eastward expansion, even if Georgia's membership bid has been
complicated by its 2008 war. The message from the White House is that Montenegro’s membership would “demonstrate the credibility of NATO’s Open Door policy”.

The focus of the Atlantic West on
Russia’s reaction has been so strong so as to prompt the question if
anybody of the geopolitical players cares for Montenegro. The civil organization MNM draws attention
exactly to the ‘missing Montenegrin’ in this highly geopolitical drama.
MNM points out that Montenegro is hardly mentioned in the discussion of
the implications of its membership. Thus, the current alliance
discussions are an example of the haughty disregard with which the
desires of the Montenegrins are held in the Atlantic headquarters. The
Montenegrins are indignant at the state of affairs in which ‘Montenegro
is a mere pawn in the Great Powers’ geopolitical chess game’ and ‘all
that matters is that NATO is on track in implementing its plans’ and
that Russia reacted not only negatively, but ‘in fury’.

You can enter, but you can never leave...

In December 2015 Montenegro has been
shaken by mass protests against the prospect of NATO membership. The
powers that be would much prefer a situation, in which militant
Montenegrin crowds demand a NATO entry, rather than the current state of
affairs, where only corrupt Montenegrin elites wave the pro-NATO
banners. Stoltenberg had to admit
that Montenegro has “to continue to make progress in demonstrating
public support for Montenegro's NATO membership”. CNN grudgingly cites Sputnik News,
referring to the “ongoing anti-government protests with thousands of
citizens gathering in ... the country's capital, Podgorica, to demand
that Montenegro stays out of the U.S.-led NATO military bloc”.

The majority of people in Montenegro prefer the option of military neutrality, arguesMNM, citing a survey conducted by the IPSOS agency.

Could Montenegro stay neutral, when faced with such overwhelming pressure to join NATO? Some analysts claim
that Montenegro’s NATO entry is ‘not a foregone conclusion’. The harsh
answer is that currently it is beyond the power of the civil society to
stop the process. Counterfire
argues that had Montenegro been issued an invitation, its rejection
could have an impact on the Balkans in inverse proportion to the
country’s size to the disadvantage of the US. “This would then be the
very first such rejection by a membership invitee in the history of
NATO’s otherwise unblemished expansion eastwards”. It seems that not
only the process is unstoppable, but that it could not even be slowed
down. Reuters reports
that Stoltenberg expects accession talks to proceed quickly, suggesting
that the small Balkan state may become a member at the July summit of
NATO leaders in Warsaw.

Overshadowed by the grand geopolitical
interests, nobody quite cares about what political directions the
Montenegrins would rather take.

An award instead of an ‘happy’ ending

If this little geopolitical drama would
be an Oscar-nominated movie, this is the time in which the credits will
be showing, and of course Milo Djukanovic ought to receive a prize. The
man is lauded by RFE
as “the smartest man in the Balkans”, “the embodiment of Montenegro’s
wild beauty” and as the “modern leader”. Everybody who has Facebook can
become his friend, and therefore he surely deserves an international
recognition. His talents were duly and favourably noted by the Organized
Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). Consequently, OCCRP
recognized Mr. Djukanovic as the “2015 man of the year in organized
crime”.

Vanja Calovic, Director of the Network for Affirmation of NGO Sector (MANS), a civil society organization based in Montenegro, justified the award in this way:
“This is a deserved award. Djukanovic, the last European dictator, has
captured our country for his own private interests and turned it into
safe haven for criminals. While he, his family and friends enriched
themselves, ordinary people suffer from poverty, injustice and
lawlessness, while those who dare to talk about the corruption become
his targets”.

Yet as deserved as his award may be, in
this drama Djukanovic has been a supporting actor. This is due to the
fact that throughout the NATO membership application process, Montenegro
has only been “a mere pawn in the Great Powers’ geopolitical chess
game”.

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

The former head of the General Staff of the Turkish Intelligence Agency told Sputnik that the Armed Forces have been growing discontent with the Syrian policy of the Turkish leadership.

Thick smoke rises following an airstrike by the US-led coalition in Kobani, Syria as fighting intensified between Syrian Kurds and the militants of Islamic State group, as seen from Mursitpinar in the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border, Sunday, Oct. 12, 2014.
EAST NEWS/ AP

Balance of Power: ‘Turkey, Saudi Arabia Try to Justify Their Own Imperialism’ in Syria
Ankara's policy towards Syria, in particularly, the statements by the Turkish leadership, indicating the intention to conduct a ground operation in Syria, directly affects the Turkish Armed Forces.
The former head of the Intelligence Department of the General Staff of Turkey, Ismail Hakki Pekin, spoke to Sputnik in an exclusive interview saying that he was sure that the Turkish Armed Forces in Syria do not have those aspirations that guide Ankara.

“Naturally, they are obliged to follow orders. But I can say with confidence that the Turkish Armed Forces have never supported the idea of a military operation against a neighboring state.”

Pekin further said that there is considerable opposition in the Turkish ranks towards the current situation. “There is an understanding that the overthrow of Assad, in fact, will not solve the problem. On the contrary, this step can cause more serious long-term instability in the region. In fact, it is in the interests of Turkey that Damascus strengthens its positions and establishes effective control and security at the border.”

According to the former head, stability in the region would help Turkey provide its own security. “For many it is clear that instead of getting involved in a useless, very expensive and protracted war it makes more sense and is much more profitable to strengthen the Syrian regime and move military operations away from Turkish borders.”

The former head of the Office of Intelligence stressed that Turkey's invasion of Afrin or Azaz can have very dangerous consequences.

“The slightest move into Syria’s inland threatens us with a clash with Russia. Even a small-scale ground operation will lead Turkey into a deadlock. Meanwhile, there are signs that preparations for such an operation are being carried out.”

Pekin said that the security measures inside the country are rising, and there are new methods being introduced in order to respond to external threats.

“I think that if Turkey still dares to take this step and invade the territory of Syria, the consequences will be irreversible,” the head concluded.

Albania follows the open-door policy for countries seeking NATO membership, and this is true also for Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the meeting with his Bosnian counterpart Igor Crnadak, foreign minister Bushati urged the country to recognize Kosovo as an independent state.

Bushati asked his Bosnian counterpart to support Kosovo's membership in regional initiatives A5 and RACVIAC and its recognition as an independent state.

Both top diplomats also pledged to strengthen cooperation and relations between the two countries.

During the meeting, the two foreign ministers discussed bilateral cooperation with particular focus on economy and trade. They stressed the need to strengthen this cooperation and expansion of the legal framework with a new set of bilateral agreements.

Both ministers signed the "Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Albania and the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina on mutual movement of citizens with ID-es."

Take advantage of the strong Euro to send money back to the UK today!
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Dominic Hipkins
24 FEBRUARY 2016 • 10:22AM

Link
I was greeted with a machinegun-burst of babble from my excitable taxi-driver at Tirana’s Mother Teresa international airport.

The weather was biblical, with red streaks of lightning and punishing torrents of icy rain. The first cab would do just fine.

I had missed the fireworks by 15 minutes. There had been a shooting farther up the road to Shkoder, the northern town that acts as self-styled “gateway to the Albanian Alps”.

Albania: the best-kept secret in the Med?
Two neighbours, the worse for wear for Balkan firewater and nursing a hangover-inflated, decade-long grudge, had got out the Kalashnikovs. Our road was sealed off, the crime scene lit by the burning cigarette tips of local traffic cops who defiantly puffed away in the downpour.

Albania - the Med before tourism took over

Communist-era concrete bunkers cropped up like molehills by the side of the road, recalling the fear of an invasion that never came. I was struck by the sight of a purple neon-piped church clinging to a nearby hillside. Tastefully done. Well, more so than the five metre mini-Big Ben we had passed earlier.

We took a diversion to the nearest town, which is host to what is possibly the world’s only George W Bush Museum. He came here once, and nobody knows why. But people remember him fondly.

11 unlikely locations tipped for a tourist boom
I had stumbled into a surreal otherworld and was not entirely sure how I would leave. Or, indeed, why I had come in the first place.

Someone had told me Albania was the Mediterranean before tourism transformed the character of southern Europe into a theme park for visitors from colder climates. True, Albania had character all right. It was just someone you would rather not run into at night, a gun-for-hire extra from The Godfather recreated in the age of Hieronymus Bosch.

Two nerve-racking hours later, minus one wing-mirror, and after a close call with a horse and cart, I arrived at my hotel, which stood beneath a crumbling hilltop castle. A surging nearby river seemed to be moving ever closer to the hotel front-desk.

In my room a complimentary bottle of the local Skanderbeg brandy lay in wait: the evil spirit which I held responsible for my torrid journey. Curious to discover more, I took a deep draught. It tasted of treacle soaked in turpentine and sent me into a dreamless slumber.

I woke to a breakfast whose memory makes my mouth water to this day. A fluffy feta-cheese omelette, olives the size of small plums, with homemade fig jam. And free brandy, naturally.

From my window I watched as fishermen cast nets from wooden canoes into a milky lake without horizon, dwarfed by mountains from the Land of Mordor. A scene from a vanished Europe, I thought. Centuries ago, this must have been a wild, lawless place. While today...

The Bureau for the Coordination of Security Services, chaired by Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, met on Wednesday afternoon in Belgrade.

SOURCE: B92, TANJUG WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2016

All security services are in a state of preparedness due to the migrant crisis, it was said after the meeting.

Justice Minister Nikola Selakovic confirmed this for B92, and said the conclusion from the meeting today was to propose to President Tomislav Nikolic the holding of a meeting of the Council for National Security.

Selakovic said the state of full preparedness relates to all security services, intelligence services, the Serbian Army and the police, "that are tasked with protecting Serbia's borders."

He added that "an increasing number of economic migrants are appearing" and that Serbia "will continue with its humane approach toward all refugees and migrants."

As for speculation that the country might raise walls and fences on its borders, Selakovic said, "Serbia will not do that."

The meeting today, called by Vucic, was attended by representatives of ministries of interior and foreign affairs and of the army.

Meanwhile in Vienna, Austria, 18 ministers from the Western Balkans gathered at the initiative of Austria's ministers of interior and foreign affairs.

Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic, who was in attendance, said that the migrant crisis will last a long time, while "the current solutions are not long-term."

It was also said during the meeting that Balkan route countries, "Serbia in particular," cannot be a hostage to the missing common European solution.

Monday, February 22, 2016

Turkey intends to CLOSE the Bosporus Strait to Russian Naval Vessels, sealing them in (or out) of the Black Sea, claiming Russia is aiding "Kurd Terrorists" in Syria.

"Russia strengthens and supports PYD organization of Syria, (Kurds) which Ankara considers to be terrorists, and also responsible for the recent car Bombing in the Turkish Captial which left 28 dead.

According to the pro-government Turkish daily "Sabah" Turkey complained that Russia, with its warships passing through the Straits toward the eastern Mediterranean, are carrying weapons and ammunition to supply the Kurds for "terrorist operations."

For this reason, Turkey says, it has the right to close the strait to the Russian Fleet.

In the past, Russia has publicly and specifically stated "Closing the Turkey Strait would automatically mean war."

Some are speculating that Turkish President Erdogan is simply bluffing, but others think he should be committed into a "madhouse" because his actions will destroy Turkey

The administration of Simferopol and the chamber of Commerce of the Greek region of Evros have signed a cooperation agreement. It aims to develop socio-economic and trade relations between Crimea and the Greek region. This was stated by the mayor of the city of Alexandroupolis - Evangelos Lambakis.

"The interest of our chamber of Commerce is very serious. We could cooperate in many areas, considering that the city has one of the largest ports, which allows the exchange of goods to bypass the Dardanelles and Bosporus. Alexandroupolis becomes an energy link which passes through about three oil pipelines and one LNG station. Our region is one of the largest producers of wind energy. We could share these technologies with Crimea. Furthermore, the Evros is a region with highly developed agriculture and animal husbandry.

22:04 22.02.2016
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the Syrian ceasefire agreement is a "real step that can stop the bloodshed."

On Monday, the Kremlin released details of the Syrian ceasefire plan the US and Russia agreed upon. The two countries had to conduct several rounds of secret negotiations before settling all details and making them public. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the plan of ceasing hostilities presents a "real step that can stop the bloodshed."

Before releasing details of the peace plan, Putin and Obama held a private telephone conversation, in which Putin stressed that the cooperation between Moscow and Washington should serve as an example of efforts against terrorism.

Breakthrough: US, Russia Agree on Syria Ceasefire Starting February 27
"The Russian-American agreements on a ceasefire in Syria, and their joint implementation in coordination with all participant countries of the International Syria Support Group [ISSG] can serve as an example of responsible policy, based on international law and UN principles, actions of the international community against the threat of terrorism," Putin said.

He said that Russia will do everything to ensure that the ceasefire is implemented, working closely with the Syrian government, and expects the US to convince Syrian opposition groups to respect the agreement.

"We will do whatever is necessary with Damascus, with the legitimate Syrian authorities," Putin said. "We are counting on the United States to do the same with its allies and the groups that it supports."

The two countries will work jointly to determine which groups the ceasefire applies to.

"The main objective now that the Russian and US sides set in their joint statement is to end unnecessary bloodshed in Syria and continue the war on terror, thus facilitating the political settlement in this country," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Six batteries of NATO-backed missile defense systems have been set up in southeastern Turkey to protect against aerial attacks from war-torn Syria (File)

Syrian Ceasefire: Prospect of Situation ‘Spinning Out of Control is Significant’
Putin also said he expects Middle Eastern countries to support the plan.

"I would like to hope that the Syrian leadership and all our partners in the region and beyond it, will support the algorithm of actions selected by representatives of Russia and the United States," Putin said.

Speaking to reporters, White House spokesman Josh Earnest confirmed that the White House contacted the Kremlin on Monday.

"This is a moment of opportunity and we are hopeful that all the parties will capitalize on it," Earnest said. He cautioned, however, that "this is going to be difficult to implement."

Moscow plans to continue "intensive dialogue" with all parties involved in the conflict.

The ceasefire agreement was reached after several rounds of talks behind closed doors.

"There were a few rounds of closed consultations, not public consultations," Peskov said.

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic says there is the growing problem of "nationalisms" in the Balkans - and that "a blind eye" is turned to this problem.

SOURCE: BETA, TANJUG MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2016 | 13:56

"The fact is that it can be felt everywhere in the region, and only a politically blind person could pretend not to see it," Vucic said in London, where he is on Monday attending an investment summit of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

Vucic said that the region, facing also the migrant crisis, is in for a difficult year both in economic and political terms.

He said that all regional countries aspire to EU membership and take serious steps to move closer to it, but added that the EU had lost "the magical power" it once had.

"We want to become a part of the EU and are committed to it, but it's no longer a big dream as it was in the past. We still have a lot to do, especially in the judiciary, the fight against crime and corruption and for this we need the support of the EBRD and the EU," said the prime minister.

Vucic added that the Nis-Pristina road should be built as soon as possible - "because if trucks wait two or three days on the administrative line with Kosovo and on the border with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia due to bad roads, there will be problems."

"We do not expect merely that someone gives us money, but to help us in reforms, in education, with political support.... Only by creating a single market and customs will we be able to achieve significant result," Vucic told the EBRD investment event dedicated to the Balkans, according to Beta agency.

"Best possible relations"

"We want the best possible relations with Balkan nations - despite the doubts about the future of the region we come from, I am confident that it is good that we are meeting and talking and that we cooperate and respect each other," Aleksandar Vucic said in London on Monday, Tanjug reported.

The migrant crisis has convinced us that we have to cooperate even more and try to overcome problems together, he added.

The migrant crisis has resulted in growing nationalist tensions in the Balkans and everyone is turning a blind eye to this, he said.

However, we are moving on, with the intent of being part of the EU, he said, noting that the EU has lost some of its magic power in the Balkans.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama suggested on Monday Serbia was advancing more quickly along the EU path "because of the Russia factor."

SOURCE: TANJUG MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2016 | 17:03

His Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic replied to the remark - which Tanjug said was "a digression from the topic of the EBRD (regional investment) summit in London" they both attended - by saying he was "not aware there was an election campaign in Albania."

"The EU is more favorably disposed to Serbia than to us, as we do not have Russia. They keep Albanians in Kosovo without visa liberalization, keep telling us that we are doing fine, but that there is more to be done. And then, he flies to Russia - and gets the start of EU entry talks," Rama said "humorously," Tanjug reported.

Continuing in the same vein, Rama added this was "not a criticism" and that what he described was “well-played" - advising Vucic that there was "no need to justify himself for it."

To this, Vucic replied: "There's an election campaign in Serbia... I was not aware a campaign had also started in Albania."

Rama then said he was "merely supporting" Vucic in his campaign.

Rama's initial remarks came as Vucic was replying to a question from the audience about Serbia's ties with Russia in the context of EU integration.

Vucic said that despite Serbia's strategic goal of continuing EU integration, the country wants to preserve its traditionally good relations with Russia, "to which it exports agricultural products the most, and will continue to."

"I see no problem with that," said the prime minister, adding that he "leaves no doubt in all meetings from Washington to Moscow regarding the fact EU membership is Serbia's strategic goal."

Vucic also stressed that Serbia's "trade, that is, export" with regional countries was "three, four, five times" greater than with Russia - "which speaks for itself."

As the meeting in London was starting earlier in the day, the cameras caught Rama, who was seated next to Vucic, peering into the papers held by the Serbian prime minister.

Obama
with its latest statement that Russia is the biggest threat to the US
seems to be a far cry from what the rest of his country believes.
According to a recent Gallup survey, Americans consider international
terrorism and not any particular country as the most critical menace for
their nation.

In
fact, Russia ranks 12 in the list of the US threats after China's
military and economic power, refugee influx and global warming.

American adults were asked
what they saw as possible threats to US vital interests over the next
decade and 79 percent agreed that international terrorism possesses a
crucial threat.

Iran's nuclear deal
that — touted as a victory for the Obama Administration — doesn't
appear to have helped ease fears as Americans still consider nuclear
proliferation by Iran as the second most dangerous event that could put
the country in turmoil.

Cyberterrorism with its 73 percent response rate has been
named for the first time in the list of threats to American,
surprisingly ranking third.

The global spread of viruses follow cyberterrorism at 63 percent as respondents believe that Ebola and Zika infectious diseases represent a significant danger for the US.

The conflict in Syria is still in the top five
among menaces for the US as 58 percent believe that regional conflict
could endanger the position of the country over the upcoming ten years.

Story Highlights

International terrorism, nuclear weapons in Iran also top list

Democrats far more likely to view global warming as "critical"

Dems, GOP about equally likely to view cyberterrorism as "critical"

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As President Barack Obama rolls out a proposal to
increase U.S. cybersecurity funding, Americans view cyberterrorism as a
leading threat to U.S. vital interests in the next 10 years. U.S.
adults rank cyberterrorism (73%) along with international terrorism
(79%) and development of nuclear weapons by Iran (75%) as the highest of
a dozen potential threats.
In prior years, Americans have been most likely to identify international terrorism, which is down slightly from last year's 84%,
and development of nuclear weapons by Iran as critical threats to the
U.S. This is the first year Gallup has asked about cyberterrorism,
defined in the poll as "the use of computers to cause disruption or fear
in society."
In the Feb. 3-7 Gallup poll, 63% of U.S. adults consider the spread
of infectious diseases throughout the world a critical threat. This
comes as the first known case of Zika virus transmission in the U.S. was
discovered in Texas, after many confirmed infections throughout the
world. After this poll was conducted, Obama announced his intention to
request additional emergency funding to combat Zika in the U.S.
The majority of Americans also see the military power of North Korea
(58%) as a critical threat. On Sunday, the last day of the poll's field
period, North Korea launched a rocket that illustrated the country's
improvements in its missile technology.
Similarly, 58% of Americans name the conflict in Syria as a critical
threat to the U.S., and a majority (52%) express concern over the
potential of large numbers of refugees attempting to enter Europe and
North America. Views of these threats as "critical" come as the conflict
in Syria rages on, and the question of whether the U.S. would take in
Syrian refugees has been hotly discussed in the 2016 presidential
campaign.
Some of the issues perceived as less threatening are global warming
or climate change (50% say it is a critical threat), the conflict
between Israel and the Palestinians (45%), the military power and,
separately, the economic power of China (both 41%), and the military
power of Russia (39%). The percentage rating Russia's military power as a
critical threat is down 10 points from last year as the Russia-Ukraine conflict has become less of a U.S. flashpoint.Partisan Differences Small on Cyberterrorism, Infectious Diseases
Republicans and Democrats, including independents who lean toward
each party, differ considerably in their assessments of what constitutes
a critical threat to the vital interests of the U.S. Republicans and
Republican-leaning independents are much more likely to categorize most
issues as a "critical threat."
The largest gap exists on the issue of global warming or climate
change, which three in four Democrats and Democratic-leaning
independents describe as a "critical threat," while only one in four
Republicans and GOP leaners agree. Conversely, Republicans and
Republican-leaning independents (70%) are nearly twice as likely as
Democrats and Democratic leaners (37%) to view the issue of refugees
entering Europe and North America in large numbers as a "critical
threat."
On a couple of issues, however, the differences between the two
groups are negligible. When asked about cyberterrorism, about
three-quarters of both Democrats and Republicans view the issue as a
"critical threat." Similarly, seven percentage points separate the views
of the two party groups on the issue of infectious diseases.Bottom Line
Given the spate of news on the fronts of international terrorism,
cyberterrorism and nuclear weapons negotiations with Iran, it's perhaps
unsurprising that these issues are at the forefront of Americans'
concerns about potential threats to the U.S. over the next 10 years. And
the president's high-profile efforts -- for example, his Wall Street Journal op-ed on cyberterrorism Tuesday -- align with the importance Americans place on such issues.
But an issue's prominence might be less of a factor in Americans'
assessments than the seriousness of its consequences if it should
happen. In the past year alone, Americans have seen the ramifications of
the Paris terrorist attacks and of Chinese hackers' infiltration of
U.S. federal government data.
Of course, Republicans and Democrats often don't agree about what
constitutes a "critical" threat to the vital interests of the U.S.
Still, for lawmakers, Americans' widespread agreement on issues such as
cyberterrorism and infectious diseases may provide a welcome opening for
bipartisan agreement and progress on issues whose importance has broad
public consensus.Historical data are available inGallup Analytics.Survey Methods
Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews
conducted Feb. 3-7, 2016, with a random sample of 1,021 adults, aged 18
and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.
For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of
sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. All
reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for
weighting.
Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60%
cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents, with additional
minimum quotas by time zone within region. Landline and cellular
telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods.

The Panepirotic Federation of America vehemently condemns the brutal destruction by Albanian authorities on August 26 of a Greek Orthodox Church in the Chimara region of the former Communist nation that once prohibited all forms of religious worship. The Church of St. Athanasius in the town of Drymades, known in Albanian as Dhermi, was completely destroyed by government agents acting on the authority of Albania’s Interior Ministry.

Petitioning European Council

The land in Himara belongs to the people of Himara! Land and property registration NOW! Signe now this petition to the European Councile, for the registration of properties to the only and single eligible owner: the PEOPLE of Himara.

Himara Community of USA, Addresses Himarra Property Issues with US State Department / Ambassador

The Honorable John F. Kerry Secretary of State U.S. Department of State Dear Mr. Secretary: We are writing to inform you of issues affecting United States citizens who have vested interests in the municipality of Himarra, Albania, and to express our concern about their long outstanding and unresolved problems regarding property rights. Over 1500 US citizens of Himarrioton descent are disenfranchised of their rights to the ownership of their family properties which were confiscated in 1945 by the communist regime. They have been attempting to claim their family properties since the end of the communist period without success due to the laws and policies of the Albanian government which a) fail to address ownership rights of pre-1945 landowners, b) fail to address the rights of owners who were forced to emigrate to the United States for economic or political reasons, and c) fail to address the rights of those with dual citizenship who have attempted to claim their properties as Albanian citizens.

Opinion - Kisha Autoqefale dhe Greqia! (14 tetor 2013)

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Officially: Omonoia, In Albania over 300.000 Greeks declared

30 % or 86,000, are declared electronically and this process includes 85 % of the members of the Greek minority Vlora Prefecture is the mostly populated by Greeks, there are about 90. 000 Greeks. TIRANA - Democratic Union of the Greek Ethnic Minority, Omonoia publishes the results of the census of members of the Ethnic Greek Community, organized by it structures. The Prime Census, was the decision of the General Council of the organization as members argued for exclusion of the Greek minority in the months Census October 2011, organized by the Institute of Statistics .

The history of elections of the Albanian dictator, to terrorize the people of Himara

A special Edition by SManalysis December 2, 1945: The Himariotes, abstaining from communist referendum, as happens usually for Himara the Albanian historians, never wrote this tragic history. Nikos Koutoulas, who boldly told the special communist court: "I'm Greek . I do not know Albanian, get me a interpret!" Still now, Albania never hold free politic elections, including Himara Municipality

Albanian Writer Raises Storm in Kosovo

Kosovo officials have rounded on Albanian writer Fatos Lubonja for saying that the political elites in both countries turned a blind eye to the crimes of the Kosovo Liberation Army, KLA. Besar Likmeta BIRN Tirana Albanian writer Fatos Lubonja In the article published in the May edition of the magazine Sudosteuropa, Lubonja focused on the reaction of Albania’s political class to the acquittal of the former KLA commander and Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj by the Hague Tribunal. Lubonja wrote that following Haradinaj’s release, the elite in Pristina and Tirana celebrated him as a hero, despite having enough information that the charges brought by prosecutors in the Hague were correct.

As long as human rights and civil liberties are violated in Himara Region primarily property, Greec

Himara Associations: Athens to block the status of Albania, if Tirana, does not solve the property issue Two associations based in Himara, "The Himara Community" and "Sea Coastal Association" have asked in a statement distributed to the media this afternoon that Greece "should block the candidate status for Albania" if Tirana, will not solve the problems of Human Rights and particularly the issue of the properties in Himara Region. The statement takes into consideration the visit Tirana following day of E.Venizelos the Greek Deputy Prime Minister also heads the Presidency of the European :

Albania minorities object to territorial division

Albania's civil society is calling on officials to diffuse tensions and protect minorities from discrimination and potential violence as a result of the decision to scrap the existing municipalities and create a new territorial administration. The government reduced the 384 local government units to 65, effectively creating entirely Albanian-majority municipalities. Greek, Macedonian and other minority representatives said the government's move violates their rights and international norms.

Poll: Albania, the most racist country in Europe

An international survey data from the World Value Survey collected and processed by the Washington Post reveals that Albania is the most racist country in Europe and worldwide more racists. The survey attempts to make a connection between economic development and being tolerant inside a society with ethnic crashes.. Thus, the most tolerant countries in the world are the Nordic countries, Great Britain and some of its former colonies, the United States, Canada and Australia. Countries with high tolerance are also in Latin America, where Venezuela exception.

Fatos Lobonja: Albania needs formatting not to rebirth

Fatos Lobonja, in an interview for the program "PULS" the KohaVision in Kosovo, there appeared criticism of developments in Albania. According Lubonja Albanians as a society still can not be consolidated. The reasons, according to him, are corrupt Albanian political elites on all sides, inside and abroad. He said they did not thirst for power leaves organize and move forward. Edi Rama's arrival at the head of government, according Lubonja, will not change the image of Albania, because Rama is associated with the oligarchs and organized crime. " He should answer that elite and non-citizens of Albania ", Lobonja estimates.

Nicholas Gage: Athens to give soon the Greek citizenship for thousand north epiriotes

World Council delegation of Epirus Abroad, meeting with the Ministry of Interior for the vote of northern epiriotes and the resolve the pension problem The visit of Nicholas Gage, is considering as the latest diplomatic effort of USA lobbing, for implementation of the "Protocol of Corfu" agreement, between Albania and Greece, based on the ulterior escalation in Balkan region. The Delegation of the World Council of Foreign Relation of Epirus (PSIE) headed by the Honorary President Nicolas Gkatzogianni, had a working meeting with the Greek Interior minister Stylianidis and v/ minister Syrigos.

Himariotes, lobbying in USA, for Autonomy

A group of people of Himara, with American citizenship, are lobbying to the US Congress and the State Department, that the Himara Region, receive the right for autonomy, according to international historical right to his self-determination. Proposed to merge all associations operating in USA, Greece and Albania, to be united in a single purpose: Autonomous Himara, Movements in the Balkans geopolitical, Mitrovica case, cutting pension from Greece, scarce public investment, robbery and illegal registration of property, etc., have raised a great concern, as never in the recent relationship of Himara, Albanian and Greek state relationship.

Pyrros Dimas, meeting with the Greek Minister of Labour, for problem of pensions to the Northern Ep

- Initiative of MP of PASOK, Pyrros Dimas for preparing and drafting a legislative proposal in collaboration with representatives of the Northern Epirus organizations. - The Minister agreed on the need to find a solution and urged the Member to develop concrete proposals, and that after consultation with the Secretary of the New Republic, Manolis Kefaloyiannis will be submitted jointly to the Minister of Finance.

"Kakome Case" again to the Albanian Tribunals

The Greek Community continues to "constant war" with the Albanian government to protect property. The apathy of Athens, to respond to the robbery of the properties in just the time, that OSCE, under the process of the registration of property in Ionian Coast, from European taxpayers, without any trasparence, is favoring according to Albanian law, alienation of property, of the Greek community , with the false documents.

Berisha: albanophobia threatens inter region

Berisha: "We must accept that they are the only people who live in 5 states. A nation that is unjustly divided into 5 states, a nation that wants to look to a common future. But again albanophobia is still in action " Albanian Prime Minister for the second time, threatening Greece, claiming that Albanians in Greece, should join the Albanian state.

NORTHERN EPIRUS THROUGH THE CENTURIES(LECTURE OF VASILIOS KYRANIS, Harvard University -1981) AL

Christos Pappas, in an interview with Arthur Zhei, News 24 TV

Pappas: "Northern Epirus is a region that holds arbitrary from Albania, as recognized by the great powers, the Protocol of Corfu. The Law of War against Albania, can not remove from Papoulias nor Greek parliament, but the Greek army is ready to liberate the Northern Epirus, again

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After a life threatening message to Archbishop Janullatos

42 Orthodox clergy against census and Red & Black Alliance: Janullatos has not afraid of death 42 Tirana archdiocese Orthodox clergy have reacted with a joint statement in defense of Anastasios Yannoulatos. Their attitude comes after strong reactions against the Red & Black Alliance, for Archbishop and after a census that sees Orthodox in third place in terms of religion in the country.

Albania: 100 years, Berisha plays 'great Albania' trump card

In Tirana Albanian leaders, tensions with Macedonia 28 November, 10:49 (ANSAmed) - TIRANA, NOVEMBER 28 - Albania's black and red national flag with a double-headed eagle is waving across the country which is celebrating today its 100th anniversary of independence in a tense political climate. The centre-right Premier Sali Berisha has been calling for days for an ethnic-national unification of all Albanians living in different Balkan states, in efforts to revive a strong nationalism which is rejected by Albania's opposition.

The Official Site of The Himara Community

CONTINUES THE DEBATE IN WASHINGTON D.C. FOR THE PROPERTY RIGHTS OF AMERICAN CITIZENS FROM NORTHERN

According to the Greek organisation of Albania estimates there are thousands of Greek American citizens from Northern Epirus (Southern Albania) which is refering the Journalist Lambros Papantoniou, asking the Spokesman of State Department for the rights of American citizens with Greek origin to take their properties in Southern Albania. Papantoniou is refereeing a Memo between Albanian State and USA about the civil rights especially for the properties of American citizens who are interested to take them according to Albanian Constitution and laws the properties of family generation. This is the second debate of the veteran Journalist for Balkan Issues in State Department Lambros Papantoiou who accuses over all the Sali Berisha Regim in Albania supported by the President Bush.

A Response to AFP

SManalysis Orthodox churches of Albania, are Byzantine churches, belong to the property of the population of Epirus.....

Avramopoulos`s speach during NATO meeting

Greece threatens Albania blocking the integration process after Berisha's statements Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos, has expressed his concern at the NATO ministerial meeting about rising tide of nationalism in Albania and premature declarations of the government. In a press release the Greek Foreign Ministry said that "the growth of nationalism and populism in some of our neighboring countries is a source of great concern."

The U.S. talk of "change of borders in the Balkans"

Message-warning sent to Albania by the U.S. representative to the State Department, which in a statement said that any change of borders in the Balkans "would be counterproductive and destabilizing," but the issue is that for the first time put the U.S. even and negative mood on any change of borders in the Balkans ...

INUK në Vlorë, pronarët: Me dokumenta të rregullta dhe leje ndërtimi

ENIKOS.GR

GREEK NEWS FROM NIKO`S BLOG

PREMIUM, THE GREEK TRASFORMATION

The "Kissinger Plan": Confederations Macedonia, Epirus, Thrache,

THE BIG CHANGE IN PERIVOLO, DRYMADES, HIMARA REGION

Dhermi, (Drymades, Himara Region) between natural beauty and destruction Look at those videos, before in 2010, everything natural and in 2012 the differences, the big changes how are divided Mafia plots, see whose investments are shown, with the camera of a sportsman parachute, in Long Beach "Perivolo" in Dhrymades, the Himara Region. Look at how this summer 2012, the Concessions of Mafia provided by The Himara Counsil Municipality and the Government of Albania, have become a reality. The Sand Beach Drymades, is transformed in the sidewalks and kiosks. See how they are transformed Dhermi, in a few years, in an administrative center, disrupting also balance the religious and ethnic composition of himariotes.

Robert Elsie: If I would live in Albania, it would be crazy. It is the same as in Ottoman times

After known albanolog Milan Shufla, Robert Elsie is the best conteproranean albanian albanolog in the World During his intereweu on "Top Channely TV, Robert Elsie, on his first interview on TV. expresed his story about Albanian and Albanian state in 100 years. An interesting tale scholar known for his work difficulties in view of the Albanian language. Elsie, who knows Albanians for years, amounts to a chilling conclusion. He says he will not ever live in Albania, as it will go mad. "I can not live here. It's a little wild for me, the relationships between people are a bit wild. I know that is just a facade that inside have good spirit, but have a rabies in human relations. You know how to protect yourself here, and here I am like a rabbit, he can not defend myself. I come here with pleasure, but do not believe they can afford to come and live here forever. There is much frustration of everyday life. Life is too short and I do not have time to bump into obstacles, only to achieve something, when in another country and get away and then live my life, "said Elsie to Albanian. And while Enver Hoxha's Albania as compared with that of Sali Berisha, adds: "There is something that depends only on the party, it's more the attitude of the people. So to get something going, you have to know someone in the Ministry, to drink coffee with, then drink coffee again next week with even a third time, and then he connects with the person that you are interested . That is the same as in Ottoman times, not like a normal country. ".

Separatists gaining ground in Europe

Greece, is going to Plan B: grant for 600 thousand Greek citizenship, at the Consulates

Failure of the Census in Albania, apparently, has forced Athens, put in place, going to Plan B to its foreign policy, grant citizenship to all Hellenic Community of Northern Epirus (Greek passports) through three Greek consulates in Albania. According to “The Albanian newspaper Gazeta Shqiptare”, in a statement issued by the Greek Consul in Argjirokaster, Nikolaos Kotroxois, will begin soon, giving the Greek passports to Albanian citizens of Greek descent, who have applied for years. The decision is taken, after Athens, has used all diplomatic sources to have to Tirana, the same wavelength, particularly in geopolitical matters, particularly Kosovo. In his statement, the Greek Foreign Minister Stavros Dimas, noted, that Tirana, continues to show towards Greece, feeling not sincere cooperation, while simultaneously calling for the right to self-determination of the Greek community in Albania.

BERISHA: GREATER ALBANIA, WE LOST TERRITORIES

he Albanian Prime Minister held a meeting with Prishtina University students, in which he argued why he is against the unification of Albania with Kosovo and why both countries would lose, if borders would be changed. “The vital interest of the Albanians is to preserve the current borders, and the Albanians should not accept, at any cost, to lose a single square meter of the land they are entitled to. Another redraw of the borders would mark undeserved losses of the Albanian territories. We must be patient, free, and should not undertake any action that threatens territorial losses. Every generation has to make its duty, and this generation made it”, Berisha declared.

Dimas:"The Greek ethnic Community in Albania has the right of free of charge self-determination"

The reliability of the results of population census in Albania, in terms of minority groups, directly challenging the foreign minister Stavros Dimas, diaminyontas same time that the Respect for human and minority rights is … crucial criterion for the progress of the accession method of our neighbor. In a letter sent to the Home in response to a question from a Member of LA.OS K. Aivaliotis, Dimas says that “the foreign ministry has closely followed all the developments surrounding the census in Albania, even though produced timely plays, both bilateral and European level to make sure the integrity process and unimpeded registration of members of the Greek National Minority, and each location of residence of such ». As outlined, the “Selection of the representatives of the main minority groups, including the Greek National Minority, invite their members to abstain in protest not guaranteed to respect the right of free of charge self-determination, showed a significant deficit of trust minority in the Albanian state, which ought to itself the Albanian government to address priority ».

The Constitutional Court Decision on December 1, the Latter abolished the term Ethnic certificate of Its Citizens. In the Decision, panels argues why the notion of "nationality" is incompatible with the constitution When Its state charter law does not provid a clear definition of Its meaning. In Assessing the Court, "nationality" as defined concept without, unlike Other components of civil law does not Create a link that 'translates the Mutual rights and duties of Natural Persons and state.

While the total population in Himara Municipality, does not exceed 12 thousand inhabitants, a source from the prosecution of Vlora, shows that the problems of ownership at the squirrels region have reached the 7500 court proceedings and special investigations, which marks a world record, by how a country like Albania, could not manage the right of ownership, in one of the areas attacked by the Albanian mafia and international. However, the U.S. Department Report for 2004 on human rights in Albania, states clearly that in the Himara Municipality, the community lands and the Orthodox Church, was robbed by a Courts with false documents, supported by the Office of Propetry Registration in Albania.

Arben Puto: Albania has declared war against Greece first

In his book "The Italian Greek War", Arben Puto, well known historian of the era of dictatorship in Albania, writes that: "In a unanimous decision of the Albanian Parliament on July 15, 1940, was ratified, the Italian Fascist royal decree, which declared all war allies France and Britain, including the USA and Greece. So need to Albanians, to be aware that Greece was not declared war Albania, but Albania, with military battalions that attacked Greece on 28 October 1940 ".

WB returns to Ionian Riviera residence reconstruction

Another World Bank project is being executed with the help of the Albanian authorities for the reconstruction of the residences in Albania’s southern coastline. The 625.000 USD project aims to protect and promote the values of the Albanian national architecture in the Southern part of the country, in order to prevent destruction and abandonment of the traditional houses. “Shqip” newspapers says that the Ministry of Public Works is the WB partner in the “Roofs and Facades” project. The implementation of the program has started in the villages classified as participators: Dhermi i Vjeter, Qeparo i Vjeter, Ilias, Vuno, Himare e Vjeter, Piqeras, Nivice and Luksht. The World Bank will finance 70% of the restauration cost, with a maximum of 7000 USD, while the program “Accommodation and Breakfast” will finance 50 of the restoration cost, with a maximum of 5,000 USD. The program “Roofs and Facades” aims to restore 72 houses in 18 months. 20 of them will adopt with the conditions of modern life, in the framework of the program “Accommodation and Breakfast”.

In Albania, at 20 years post-dictatorship, 8 thousands murders, for the issue of property

The shocking data, are given by the Prosecutor General, to the Albanian press Shocking facts which, in the wake of Albania rank Civil War, the high level of killings, including the year 1997 Through the Albanian press, Attorney General, has published shocking facts about the increasing number of murders in Albania, especially for issues of ownership. Clic on photo ....

Himara 26 centuries, a history of glorious Independence

HIMARA, THE NEXT MONTE CARLO`S IN EPIRUS

First step to Greater Albania: Kosovo Opens First Highway Section

A 38 kilometre-tranche of the road, which will eventually cross the country from the Albanian to Serbian border, was opened on Saturday. The first section, which runs from Vermica on the Albanian border to close to the town of Suhareka, cost 330 million euro. Senior Kosovo and Albania government officials were present at the inauguration ceremony. In a speech, Kosovo’s President Atifete Jahjaga said that the "highway has the role of linking nations and countries". "It is our link with important European corridors. Our coordinated policy will make us a free and equal members of the European Union," she added. Named the "Ibrahim Rugova Highway", after Kosovo's most famous president, the road connects with Albania's first highway, which was also built by the Turkish-American consortium Bechtel-Enka.

George Goro: Registration of properties on the southern coast of Albania faces difficulties

The process of registration of property in southern coastal areas of Albania is getting quite difficult. Mayor George Himara Goro says it has so far only completed the registration of houses and land but not land. Problems with documentation and the implementation of the Land Law difficult, according to him, residents in this process.

The Monument of Independence of Albania, is in hassle

PDIU Cam Community Party, the Socialist Party's local leader in Vlora, and "Red & Black Alliance", are making a nationalistic competition, the Monument of Independence and the Albanian national flag. Few days ago, Prime Minister Sali Berisha, said the establishment of a new monument to the independence of Albania in Tirana, implying, dismiss the historical tradition of Albanian independence in Vlora.

Himarrioton Society of America

The Himarriotans of America, motivated by the love of Himarra, the land of their native origin, and dedicated to the noblest ideals of their forfathers, have established this organization which aspires to the cultivation and preservation of Himarriotic culture in America, to making a positive difference in the lives of its members, and to promoting the rights and interests of the Himarriotans in Himarra, through the realization of patriotic, charitable, philanthropic, educational and cultural endeavors.

Opinion in Kosovo: "Socialists in Albania, are filo Greek"

The Chairman of the Opposition in Albania, Edi Rama, accused by the press in Kosovo that "he is with filo Greek sentiments" If, Sali Berisha, Albania's current prime minister, is expected both in Macedonia and Kosovo, as president of the Albanian nation, this has not happened with the chairman of the opposition in Albania, Edi Rama. During a recent visit to Kosovo, Edi Rama is unpopular, the fact that the perception of public opinion in Kosovo, is that the south, is the area close to Greece, but especially Rama and the Socialist Party, was accused of holding a position filo Greek, against the interests of Greater Albania.